CHENNAI: Gaganjeet Bhullar won’t forget 2016 in a hurry. Overtaken by others after establishing himself as India’s premier golfer and nursing injuries, he was languishing at 637 in world rankings when the year started. For a man ranked 82 at the age of 22, that was a major slump. Following two victories on the Asian Tour this year, he has not only announced a grand comeback, but is also nurturing hopes of getting back in the top 100.
“Not that I’m particularly conscious about world rankings, but getting back in the top 100 is one of my year’s goals. To have started winning again is great and two titles in two months is very satisfying. It’s a result of my hard work,” Bhullar told Express from Jakarta, after winning the BANK BRI-JCB Indonesian Open. He had won a title in Korea last month.
Kept waiting by inclement weather overnight, Bhullar completed his last round on Monday morning. Saving par on the remaining three holes was enough for a tally of 16-under 272. Jeev Milkha Singh finished in a pack of four on joint second, three shots behind Bhullar.
Hailed as special talent when he turned pro in 2006 and won four titles on the Asian Tour from 2009-13, the Kapurthala golfer experienced the other side of things when Injuries caused a dip in form. Without victories in 2014 and 2015, he managed just two top-10 places in 46 events in this period and just about secured qualification on the Asian Tour for this year. Despite that, he had told Express in January that he was worried mainly about injuries and not his game.
“I had faith in my ability and knew that like every sportsman does, I was going through a bad phase. After recovering from injury, it was a question of a few things falling in place. I guess self belief and experience also played a part,” said the 28-year-old. Evidently better than the pack on the domestic tour when he started as a teenager, he was the leading Indian player for a while before the slump. World No 246 before Jakarta, he will move closer to the top 100 with this win.